Tea Reviews | It's All About The Leaf

Posts Tagged ‘Tea Leaves’

Earl Grey tea is one of the most popular and well-known kinds of tea in the Western world. It was named after the second Earl, Charles Grey, of Britain in the 1830s. Charles Grey was the prime minister at the time the act was passed to abolish slavery in the British Empire. This is quite an accomplishment, yet people know him for his tea instead.

Earl Grey is not a type of tea but rather plain black tea infused with the citrus flavour of bergamot. Hampstead’s Earl Grey comes in an attractive but difficult to open white tin canister. The picture on the front is an interesting image of two tea leaves in a brown and yellowish cloud of smoke. I had no problems opening the outside lid, but the inner one could not be pried with my newly-manicured fingernails (and I wasn’t favouring my fingernails). I had to use the end of a fork to pry it open.

The nose on the dry leaf is very lemony, however steeped clear orange infusion emits a surprisingly less citrusy nose as the aromas of the tea part of the beverage is now predominant. I think I had to take a second sip to make sure I was drinking an Earl Grey. That is because with many Earl Grey’s the bergamot flavour stands out and you really taste the lemony citrus note above all other flavours. There is usually a bright, tart, refreshing taste to most Earl Greys. I should note however, that the bergamot is often used to mask a lack of flavour in poor quality black tea. The quality of black tea used in Earl Grey needs to be checked.

The Earl Grey from Hampstead has a more muted bergamot note. The tea taste comes more to the forefront. So for those of you who do not like overpowering bergamot but prefer more subtle citrus flavours, I would recommend this tea to you. Does this mean that Hampstead is using better quality black tea than the other tea companies out there that they do not need to mask the tea flavour with an overpowering bergamot flavour? Perhaps. Their packaging says their tea comes from Makaibari, the first biodynamic tea estate in the world, situated 3-4000 ft high in the Himalayas. The dry leaf looks attractive enough. Short, black, dark brown, some Assam tea some tippiness, a good roll to it. It is a good leaf.

The question then becomes why deviate from the norm? If the majority of the tea companies are supplying the bergamot-favoured tea vs. the tea favoured tea and this is what consumers know is the norm, what they expect, is popular, and are eating them up then why fix something that isn’t broken? I can appreciate it being a better quality tea, but after tasting both “types” of Earl Greys, I gotta say, I like the “bergamot-favoured, plain, low-quality black tea” Earl Grey of the other tea companies, even though the tea is poorer. But then again maybe there is a market for an Earl Grey where the predominant taste is a good tea taste and a more subtle bergamot taste. I certainly prefer many of my flavoured teas to have a tea taste rather than a flavour taste. It’s just with Earl Grey that I prefer the opposite. And that is because I tend to favour lemony tastes. This is the first time I’ve tasted an Earl Grey with a stronger tea than bergamot taste and it is one I will not soon forget. Maybe there is something that can be said about the vantages of combining good quality black tea with bergamot? Hmm.

It is also notable that this tea is certified organic and fairtrade. What does fairtrade mean?

Chances are when you have a cup of tea in the morning, you are not thinking about the working conditions of those involved in getting the tea from the gardens to your cup, yet with the growth of social conscience today, this topic is becoming more and more relevant as can be seen by the growth in interest in the Fair Trade movement. Fair Trade tea has been around since 1994 in Canada and was slow to catch on. Today, its market share remains tiny, making up about one half of one percent of all tea sales in Canada. But it’s growing fast. The range of Fair Trade teas available is wider than ever.

How does Fair Trade work? TransFair, the certifying body, has a rigorous audit system which verifies industry compliance with Fair Trade criteria and allows companies to display the FTC label on products that meet these standards. TransFair belongs to Fair Trade Labeling Organizations (FLO), an international organization headquartered in Germany. Just as TransFair audits the activities of licensees, FLO manages certified producer cooperatives and importers. The work of TransFair and FLO complement each other so that the chain of commodities is tracked from the farm to the finished product, making sure that the Fair Trade criteria has been met. A Joint Body – a special council on the estate made up of workers and estate managers – is created. The Joint Body decides how the Fair Trade premium paid by licensed importers to the certifying body will benefit the whole community.

Proponents of Fair Trade argue that the FTC system works to improve the quality of life for tea plantation workers, their families, and communities in a number of ways. Fair Trade provides fair, livable wages and premiums, opportunities for social development programs, improved access to higher education, and funds to repair dilapidated housing and facilities. Other concerns that Fair Trade can address include health and safety issues such as water contamination, worker health, unsanitary sewer systems, access to healthcare, and emergency transit. Fair Trade promotes worker empowerment, worker autonomy, and facilitates social and economic mobility for workers and their families.

Today where consumers are looking for social accountability from producers, fairtrade teas are becoming a growing share of the market. This was the first fairtrade tea I’ve reviewed and I’m sure not the last.

You can purchase the Biodynamic, Organic and Fairtrade Earl Grey directly from the Hampstead Tea website.

I have two tea bags with which to form a review of this tea. So, I will be sharing my thoughts on this tea as I progressed through both tea tastings.

First tea bag:
The smell from the dry tea bag is minty. The teabags from Hampstead Tea are really full, not your typical tea bag. I brewed the bag for 2 minutes, added a splash of milk and sipped. “What does this remind me of? Dirt? No, mint.” For me the tea has a mint aftertaste. Is this bad? It depends, do you want your breakfast tea to remind you of mint? I decided on this first cup that I did not want mint with breakfast.

Second tea bag:
The smell from the dry tea bag is minty. No denying the mint flavor. As I brewed for two minutes, I braced myself for the previous flavor profile. I sipped my first sip and hum…it seems better to me. Is it a tea that I would pick for breakfast? Probably not. I did read another reviewers take on this tea and they compared it to a Darjeeling. I can see that comparison now that I have drank two full cups of this robust black tea.

Overall, I like Hampstead Tea tea bags, they are full and brew up nicely. This particular EB left me wanting something else. It is just not my cup of tea.

You can purchase the Organic Fairtrade English Breakfast directly from the Hampstead Tea website.

When you start reviewing a large number of teas, it may feel like you are reviewing many that are just mediocre and coming across a real gem may seem hard to come by. But of course it is really worth it when you do find that one tea that stands out above the rest. “Pure Zealong,” a New Zealand Oolong tea is just that special tea. And you know you’ve had a good tea when the review starts to write itself.

This tea came with a brochure that boasts its purity, and that is the perfect description for it; it is clean and pure and refreshing. Pure it certainly is. Unlike with Chinese and Taiwan Oolongs where the first infusion is usually poured away to rid of impurities and the second infusion is consumed, with the Pure Zealong the first and second infusion are just as drinkable. Moreover, it is difficult to be refreshing when you are a hot tea but the Pure Zealong has that bit of tang you get when you taste something refreshing. It is long in the mouth having a lingering aftertaste, a sign of a quality tea. Be careful with the time and temperature used in steeping as poor time and temperature can lead to a soapy taste. I recommend 90-93C for 2 to 4 minutes. It has a bit of an aftertaste that is sweet like a Baimudan. I’d say the taste is in between the taste of a Baimudan and a lightly oxidized oolong.

Before seeing this tea, I never knew New Zealand produced teas, and why not? As they say on their website, New Zealand has a pure, clean, fertile environment. That coupled with the hand pick of the finest tea leaves and plants from Taiwan, and processed with the best Chinese traditions and world leading food safety standards, you inevitably are left with the “world’s purest Oolong tea, with superb fragrance and flavour.” And I agree. This is certainly a special tea. The price at $58.00 for 100grams certainly attests to that. But it is worth it, with a delicate green infusion, soft perfumy aroma, and refreshingly sweet aftertaste. This is a superb tea. And superb teas are best to be taken on its own. I would not pair it with any food. Maybe try serving it gongfu-style to appreciate the nuances of each infusion. Imagine that, superb tea with good company and good conversation – one way this tea can be and enjoyed. Just the way I like it.

You can purchase the Zealong Pure directly from the Chicago Tea Garden website.

Ingredients for this were thankfully simple. Along with the touted natural blueberry flavoring were Bai Mu Dan (White Peony) leaves and cornflowers. Telling them apart wasn’t a difficult feat, even for a bespectacled boob such as myself. The tea leaves were forest green-to-brown – wilderness-like in appearance – with flecks of bold purple interrupting the jungle-ish canvas. Cornflowers aren’t considered a flavor enhancer. They’re added to blends for the sole purpose of making them look pretty, such as with Earl Greys. They certainly did their part here. As did the blueberry flavoring; one would’ve thought a blueberry had bled for this blend.

Brewing instructions called for a water temperature of 80C (176F) and a one-to-two-minute steep. That actually seemed rather light for a Bai Mu Dan in my opinion. Peony is generally a very resilient white. Usually, I went with a 165F (or above) steep for three minutes. That said, I went with their recommendation; a heaping teaspoon worth in 8oz of water, steeped for two. Just in case.

The liquor brewed up to the usual pale yellow associated with most white teas, albeit a tad darker since it was a Peony. The steam aroma was about as blueberry as anything could get, even in comparison to actual blueberries. The fragrance was also surprisingly sweet, giving the impression of fruit candies. Y’know…the roll-up kind. No surprise, but the flavor echoed the smell to the letter. Most flavoring agents dilute a bit upon infusion, but this stayed afloat like some sort of – uh – berry boat. (What? It was all I could come up with?!)

For connoisseurs looking to taste some Bai Mu Dan with their blueberry, I regret to inform you won’t get much of an impression of the white tea base. The problem with blending white tea is that so subtle a foundation gets lost in the botanical fray. This is why the most successful white tea blends use petals and blossoms, so as to enhance their subtleties. Actual freeze-tried or sun-dried blueberries probably would’ve worked better with this. That is, if the goal was to have a White Peony presence. But for something that blares with bombast about it’s “blueberry”-ness, this succeeds in spades.

You can purchase the Blueberry White Tea directly from the TeaFrog website.

Flowering teas originate from Southwestern Yunnan Province. Flowering teas are prepared primarily for their aesthetics; often in glass / transparent vessels so that the blooming of a flower right before your eyes within seconds can be fully enjoyed. The tea leaves are harvested and while damp, they are sewn into various shapes and bundles with cotton thread. One single, more elaborate bundle may take as long as ten minutes to sew. Flowers commonly used are globe amaranth, chrysanthemum, jasmine, lily, hibiscus, and osmanthus. Flowering teas can be refreshed several times, and do not get bitter with extended steeping. The taste profile is usually light, fragrant, and aromatic. Here I have posted pictures of my steeping of Canton Tea’s Sweet Osmanthus.

This flowering tea is in the shape of a bulb. It is made up of silver needle and orange osmanthus flowers so I steeped it at 88C. The aroma coming off the pot smelled very sweet like nectar and a little like medicinal herbs. It did not smell floral at all.

The infusion was a light orange colour similar to the colour of the osmanthus flower that emerged from the bulb. This is interesting for a silver needle. Most infusions of industrial white teas are yellowish-orange but not premium quality white tea which brings up the point of the quality of the tea that goes into flowering teas. I would think that they are on the lower end as the point of flowering teas is more for aesthetics than for taste.

The bulb opened up completely in about 3 minutes, just enough time for the tea to steep. The website said the tea tastes like lilies and orange osmanthus. I do not know what that tastes like but this tea did not taste floral or fruity, or crisp or refreshing but it is on the opposite end – more robust, grounded, a hardier taste. It tastes a bit like sugar cane. Not bad if that is what you like. Sometimes I opt for the less fruity and floral teas myself.

You can purchase the Sweet Osmanthus Flowering Tea directly from the Canton Tea Co. website.